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On Campus
By Kaitlyn Alley
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By Joe Mayo
By Charlie Pimienta
RESOURCES
By Kaitlyn Alley
By Charlie Pimienta
RESOURCE
Timeline of the UW Gender and Sexuality Campus Center
By Charlie Pimienta
RESOURCE
Battle for Equity
By Kaitlyn Alley
Misogyny in Academia: Hearing the voices at University of Wisconsin-Madison
By Kaitlyn Alley
SIDEBAR
Bathrooms showcase gender inequality
The bathrooms on the engineering campus at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are unequal in terms of the amount, quality and convenience.
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There are significantly more male bathrooms than female or gender inclusive bathrooms. This is most prominent in the Engineering Research Building where there are five female bathrooms in the whole 13-story building.
There are no gender inclusive restrooms in the building either.
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The quality of the restrooms when comparing female and male restrooms varies as well. The restroom differences start with the sink bowls and faucet handles, with male restrooms having the most updated version of them.
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The female restrooms had an average of two stalls whereas the male restrooms had an average of two stalls and six urinals in Engineering Hall.
The female restroom on the first floor of the Engineering Research Building is on the opposite side of the entrance to the building, away from elevators.
In the Mechanical Engineering Building, the first floor female restroom’s handicapped stall doesn't lock properly, leaving people using that restroom vulnerable to the stall door opening.
Four students from The University of Wisconsin-Madison, or UW Madison, are all in majors that are statistically “male-dominated” and have witnessed or have been a victim of misogyny, the “hatred of, aversion to or prejudice against women,” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary) within the context of academia. These students sat down to reflect on their experiences within their respective schools and agreed that biases exist within their education. Some have been victims of it, others have contributed to it, however, they all have seen it. Now, they want to be heard.
“Male-dominated” majors are majors where the mass population of students studying in the field are male. According to a study, majors in Business and STEM, science, technology, engineering and math, were surveyed as being high in male population. The highest, where 75% or more studying the major were male, were majors in schools of business and engineering. The Business and Engineering schools at UW Madison are no exception to this.
According to justice.gov, a decision made based on discrimination, whether positive or negative that is conscious, is explicit bias. Comments or direct actions that imply discrimination are examples of this. They go on further by saying implicit bias is subconscious and is developed as a result of prior influences and impacts. However, implicit bias does not require maliciousness; it only requires discriminatory actions, regardless of intent. Implicit bias can be just as harmful as explicit bias.
Within the Engineering school, implicit bias towards women is clear to Maddie Meland, a student going into her junior year studying chemical engineering at the UW Madison School of Engineering.
“Every man that I’ve worked with has [misogyny] a little bit. It can be as simple as they are trying to help you and they just have that predetermined idea that you don’t understand because you’re a woman. So, when they try explaining things, they explain it like ‘you have no idea what’s happening,’” Meland says.
Results from a study showed that there was no significant difference in self-reported explicit bias against women in positions of power and authority between men from male-dominated majors. However, there was significantly more implicit bias among men from male-dominated majors as opposed to majors of little gender disparities, or gender-equal majors. Additionally, women from male-dominated majors experienced significantly more gender harassment than women from gender-equal majors.
However, according to Greta Hein, a Junior who is majoring in chemical engineering at the UW Madison School of Engineering, explicit bias still lingers.
“I had a guy tell me it was unfair I got an internship because it was clearly because I was just a girl and not smart,” Hein says.
A 2018 social sciences study plays into her experience of explicit bias, as it revealed that when men from male-dominated majors were under a “gender threat,” they became significantly more behaviorally aggressive, either physically or verbally. In this study, a “gender threat” is defined as “a threat to masculinity.” Examples of this, from other studies referenced, include a “braiding hair activity” or being told they “squeeze like girl.”
Wyatt Braman, a Junior majoring in chemical engineering in the UW Madison School of Engineering, admitted that, “...the male ego is very fragile” and acknowledged that he “mansplains” but continued to say, “I will over-explain to anybody.”
These experiences and perspectives aren’t exclusive to the Engineering school, however. It also exists in the UW Madison School of Business. Autumn Hutchens is a junior studying International Business and Management & Human Resources in the UW Madison School of Business.
Hutchens said, “A lot of the men [I work with] can be kind of condescending like they know everything for some reason and I think that factors into the fact that it is a male-dominated field. So, they think they know more than women do. [...] The men will either not pull their weight or do what they want to do and nothing else.”
According to Meland, these attitudes towards women aren’t exclusive to strangers or classmates, they can come from a male friend.
“Even to our so-called allies, they still treat us as the other. [...] When I bring it up, ‘I’m just complaining.’” says Meland.
Hein believes this behavior towards women is undeserving, saying one of her friends who “...has literally been mansplained to 100 times, got some of the class highs on our exams.”
This behavior from men goes beyond student to student interactions, though. Meland talks about a female professor who consistently got interrupted throughout the semester by a male teaching assistant or TA to “correct” her.
“...a professor who graduated from MIT [Massachusetts Institute of Technology] who’s been teaching for over 30 years, and [the TA] hasn’t even graduated his bachelors,” said Meland.
According to a study, perceptions of higher education assistant instructors in an online class rated two different gender identities disproportionately. Students rated the male identity significantly higher than the female identity regardless of the instructor’s true gender identity. It further explains that these results proved a gender bias.
“Whenever talking about their female professor, [the student’s] reason for disliking her is always ‘she’s so annoying to listen to.’ It’s never about her teaching,” said Hein.
Braman illustrates that gender disparities go further within the engineering campus, right down to the buildings.
“In Engineering Research, there are three or four women’s bathrooms in the whole building and there are 10 or 11 floors but there is a men’s bathroom on every floor.” ***
Misogyny has been an issue that has varied in form within both public and private spaces throughout history. These students have experienced it just by going to school. Although the shared perspectives of these students at The University of Wisconsin-Madison have just scratched the surface for a much larger picture, it starts a dialogue: the frustration that is to have to debate for a seat at a table with no more chairs. The road to equality is long but the next step is to build your own chair and table, or something better.
UW students make their voices heard after Roe v. Wade Ruling
By Joe Mayo
On June 24 of 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling, a pivotal case for reproductive health and rights in the United States. Now, students and student-run organizations at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are leading the charge for reproductive rights.
Since the shocking ruling from the United States Supreme Court over a year ago, women’s health and reproductive rights have been at the forefront of American news and politics. The UW-Madison community has been heavily impacted by this ruling, with students marching on the capital and doing more than ever to be involved in local and state politics.
The ruling came as a shock to many, with Roe v. Wade being untouched since its creation in 1973. UW junior Elise Wilson shared her feelings from when the historic precedent was overturned.
“There was a sense of shock and sadness as a woman,” she said. “Generations before us fought to have these rights, and it feels like a step in the wrong direction, it made the future look bleak for me; first, my reproductive rights are being taken away, what's next?”
The feeling that America took a step back is a mutual one felt by many who are disappointed in the decision made by the United States Supreme Court. UW-Madison junior, Kayla Hendrikse, saw this step back and was devastated hearing the ruling.
“I think that we have moved in the right direction in terms of politics over the last century but this change put us a big step back,” she said. “Abortion is healthcare and I think everyone should have access to it when it is necessary.”
After the news broke that the Supreme Court would overturn Roe v. Wade, many students took to the streets of Madison to make their voices heard. Wilson, who attended the Madison march for reproductive rights, felt a sense of power among the crowd who banded together to fight for reproductive health.
“I went to the March at the Wisconsin State Capitol right when Roe v. Wade was overturned, and I thought that was one of the most powerful things I've ever been to,” Wilson said.
A major aspect that caused frustration around the ending of Roe v. Wade in Wisconsin, is the abortion ban of 1849 which is still currently in place. While some states already had protections on reproductive rights or made them after Roe v. Wade was overturned, Wisconsin has yet to make any change on this front. Many feel that a law from the 1800s should not dictate how somebody may chose to live their life today and UW Sophomore Ty Schanhoefer, a member of College Democrats, believes that change is inevitable.
“Obviously laws will change. Things will change as time goes on, so I think that the 1849 abortion ban is one of those things with time we learn. Society changes, and we progress,” he said.
The most important thing with change, is making it happen. The amount of young adults voting compared to recent years has skyrocketed, with 6% more young adults registered to vote in the 2022 midterms compared to 2018, according to Civic Nation. A monumental reason for this change was the oveturning of Roe v. Wade. There is a new passion for voting amongst the youth, including Hendrikse who has used voting as a way to make herself heard.
“I contribute to politics by always being an active voter in every election,” she said. “By doing this, I give myself a voice in what happens within our government no matter how little that voice may seem.”
Despite the shock and sadness from the initial news that Roe v. Wade had been overturned, many used the opportunity to remind everyone of the importance of reproductive health with nationwide protests and marches, including several outside of the Wisconsin State Capital. Schanhoefer shared how he felt seeing the response to the ruling.
“It was good to see some of the outcry against the ruling. Good things are happening because of it — just people banding together and voting for their rights,” he said.
This outcry was followed by a pro-reproductive health wave of voting in Wisconsin. In the Fall of 2022 and Spring of 2023, the re-election of Gov. Tony Evers and the election of Judge Janet Protasiewicz dominated the news cycle, both emphasizing reproductive rights and health in their campaigns. Schanhoefer canvassed for both Gov. Evers and Judge Protasiewicz’s campaigns and immediately, he could tell how big of an issue reproductive health was, specifically in the Madison area.
“I got involved with college Democrats at Madison for the fall midterm elections and the spring Supreme Court election and reproductive rights were definitely a huge issue on the ballot,” he said.
This wave of student involvement in local politics came at the right time for Wisconsin Democratic campaigns. Judge Protasiewicz received 46.5% of the vote, nearly double the amount of runner-up Dan Kelly, according to Ballotpedia. Schanhoefer described the importance of canvassing and the openness he received from Madison residents willing to listen.
“[Canvassing] gave me more hope than I thought I’d have,” he said. “Reproductive rights isa pretty divisive issue, but 99% of the people I talked to were open to hearing what I had to say and really excited about voting.”
The turnoutot from Dane County proved voters were excited about making their voices heard because in his re-election campaign, Gov. Tony Evers won nearly 79% of the vote, according to Dane County election results. Evers platform relied heavily on reproductive rights and in his victory speech he recognized Wisconsin voters who got him back into office.
“You showed up because you saw our democracy was on the brink of existence, and you decided to do a damn thing about it,” Evers said.
One of the most inspiring components of the flight for reproductive rights has been the response which goes much further than just students. Wilson saw many families while marching and was impressed by parents involving their kids in such a big issue early on.
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“I think it's really important for parents to teach their kids how to be good citizens, so it was so cool to see parents bringing their children and including them in that,” Wilson said.
SIDEBAR
Roe v. Wade was a landmark supreme court case decided in 1973 which recognized that the decision to continue or end a pregnancy was the right of the individual and not the government.
Now 50 years later, the United States Supreme Court has overturned the ruling, deciding that this decision is the government’s choice and not the individual’s. The decision has resulted in numerous protests across the country, including the Women’s March in Madison earlier this year.
This march was held prior to the extremely important state Supreme Court election in April of 2023, which contained many questions about the 1849 abortion ban and the future of reproductive health in Wisconsin.
The march was hosted by the Madison Abortion & Reproductive Rights Coalition for Healthcare and Madison saw thousands of protestors filling the lawn of the state Capitol.
The next march in Madison is a “Bans Off Our Bodies March” October 2, which ends at the capitol building.
How UW-Madison’s Gender and Sexuality Campus Center Empowers Transgender and Non-Binary Students
By Charlie Pimienta
SIDEBAR
More on the GSCC founder
Alnisa Allgood founded the GSCC in 1992, only back then it was called the LGBT center. According to her interview with OnWisconsin, after studying chemical engineering on an Air Force scholarship at Penn State University, Allgood came out as gay and was given discharge papers shortly after, preventing her from serving her country due to her sexuality.
fter this, she moved to Madison and met with the 10 percent society, a gay student organization, where she learned about their struggles to create a space for LGBT students at the UW.
After more conversations with other LGBT organizations, Allgood knew that getting the board of regents to approve and fund the center would be a tough task, at least at the time. So she sought other ways to fund the center, ultimately using student fees and grants to make it a reality.
Tucked away on the first floor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s imposing Red Gym is room 137. When you enter the room, you are met with vibrant colors, beautiful artwork, cozy couches, multiple workspaces and inviting staff members. This is the Gender and Sexuality Campus Center (GSCC), a sanctuary and support center for LGBTQ+ students and their communities.
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According to their website, their mission is to provide “education, outreach, advocacy and resources'' to the UW community to create a safer, more inclusive campus environment for people of all sexualities and gender identities.
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The GSCC offers some of the most comprehensive resources for transgender health when compared to other LGBTQ+ college centers across the country. Beyond this, the center has helped enact changes in university policy to allow trans and non-binary students to live freely and authentically on campus.
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Katherine Briggs (they/them), the assistant director of the GSCC, provided insight into the center’s holistic approach to supporting trans and gender-diverse students.
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“Half of it is social support, and half of it is structural support,” Briggs said. “We are pretty unique among LGBT centers on college campuses that we do so much with trans health and transition care, specifically.”
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According to their website, GSCC staff partnered with University Health Services (UHS) in 2018 to implement hormone replacement therapy with informed consent. This removes barriers with gender affirming care because patients no longer require a letter from a mental health provider recommending the treatment. As long as a patient can make an informed decision to receive hormone replacement therapy, they should have access to it through University Health Services.
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Other instances of structural support for these communities came with changes to university policies. A few include gender neutral restrooms as well as preferred name and pronoun use in university systems. This helps trans and non-binary students be seen by the campus community in a way that aligns with their identity. Other student populations that may prefer to use a different name or a universal restroom have been able to utilize these policy changes to feel more comfortable at UW-Madison.
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“We see that lots of international students use the preferred name policy,” Briggs said. “People with nicknames use the name in use policy, but it was developed with the intention of making campus safer for trans and non-binary students.”
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In terms of social support, the GSCC established open lines of communication for trans and gender non-conforming students through their dedicated Discord channel. Here, students in this community can speak openly about their experiences or get answers to questions they may have relating to trans and non-binary issues.
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The GSCC has also partnered with the university’s mental health services to provide a trans and gender diverse support group. This weekly group therapy doesn’t count towards University Health Services’ limit on therapy sessions, which allows trans and non-binary individuals to get the mental health support they need regardless of how many official sessions they have remaining with UHS.
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This wrap-around support for trans and non-binary students is even more critical now as the topic of gender ideology has become increasingly politicized across the United States, with a record amount of anti-LGBTQ+ bills being introduced in state legislatures, according to a CNN report. While such a regression is disappointing to them, Briggs cannot say that they are surprised by it.
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“We see, across many kinds of political issues, waves and responses to those waves. So we will see progress, and then a backlash to that progress that will feel very regressive and violent,” Briggs said. “I think it’s predictable, I’m not surprised.”
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The State of Wisconsin has not been immune to this regressive wave. According to PBS news, a republican-led legislative committee in Wisconsin blocked a bill that would have banned therapists, counselors and social workers from seeking conversion therapy for their LGBTQ+ clients.
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Conversion therapy is the process of attempting to change a person's sexual or gender identity to align with heterosexual and cisgender norms through a variety of harmful practices. According to Good Faith Media, even after the medical community stopped viewing homosexuality and gender diversity as a ‘disease’ in the 1960’s, religious organizations made faith-based arguments for why conversion therapy should continue.
Arya Chimata, an undergrad who works at the GSCC doing student support, commented on how institutionalized violence like this in Wisconsin just reinforces the need for a LGBTQ+ safe space on campus.
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“It's important for people to know that there is a space on campus that is devoted to making them feel welcome, especially with how things are happening in Wisconsin,” Chimata said. “Someone else’s life should not be based on your religion.”
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While the university and the city of Madison haven’t seen as much of this violent regression as the rest of Wisconsin and the United States, there are some issues unique to Madison and the campus community that trans and gender-diverse individuals face. A phenomenon that Briggs identified through conversations with trans and non-binary individuals at the University is that the political climate in Madison is so progressive and that a liberal identity is so salient to people that it makes them resistant when they are taught something new.
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“I think the social environment means that sometimes people are more resistant to hearing how they need to change,” Briggs said. “I think all of us need to keep that cultural humility and curiosity and keep working, rather than thinking, ‘OK, racism is over, sexism is over, transphobia is over, we are doing it so great in Madison that we don’t need to worry.’”
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Trans and non-binary individuals in the United States deal with attacks on their identities on a regular basis. The nation is so divided that even topics outside of politics-like personal choices people make about their gender identity-have become fuel for debate. It is important that LGBTQ+ allies know the best ways they can support trans and non-binary individuals and help combat the dangerous rhetoric that they face.
Both Briggs and Chimata highlighted that as much as allies may want to have discussions with people who are vocally against rights for trans and non-binary individuals, the best way to support trans and non-binary individuals is to not platform or engage with hateful people or ideas.
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“Don’t engage with people who are full of hate,” Chimata said. “People who are not a part of the [LGBTQ] community, I think that they think that having a conversation with them and trying to understand their perspective means something. But they don't have a perspective. They are just going off of nothingness. I think engaging with them makes it so much worse.”
“It’s not a debate,” Briggs said, “Folks are really interested in civil discourse and respect. But by equating two perspectives that are not equal, it's already creating an unsafe and volatile environment.”